


Burnout is a Real Thing

by tigermo09



Category: 9-1-1: Lone Star (TV 2020)
Genre: Fluff, Internal Conflict, M/M, Relationship Advice, Worry
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-02-11
Updated: 2020-02-11
Packaged: 2021-02-28 03:40:27
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 4,397
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22657159
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/tigermo09/pseuds/tigermo09
Summary: Where was Carlos during the tornado?
Relationships: Carlos Reyes (9-1-1 Lone Star)/TK Strand
Comments: 10
Kudos: 304





	1. Carlos

**Author's Note:**

> Sorry, this was not beta’ed, so I apologize for any mistakes. I just had this idea in my head and needed to get it out.

“Reyes.” 

Carlos looked up from his computer at the officer that had stopped next to his desk.

“Captain wants to see you in his office.”

Carlos sighed. He was trying to finish this last report so he could clock out for the day. His Thursday started out so slow, but of course he had to do back to back to back calls a couple hours before his shift was over and was now stuck trying to finish the paperwork.

He nodded to towards the officer. “Thanks.”

He saved his report, locked the computer, and headed over the his captain’s office.

The door was already open, but he knocked and waited to be acknowledged.

His captain looked up. “Reyes, come in. Close the door and have a seat.”

Carlos did as instructed and settled in.

“Reyes, you’ve been doing a great job,” his captain began.

“Thank you, Sir.”

“It seems you’ve been taking on a lot of extra shifts recently though.”  
Carlos nodded. “Yes, Sir.”

“I also noticed you signed up for a double this weekend.”

Carlos nodded again. “Yes, Sir.”

“Well, considered it cancelled.”

Carlos froze at that. “Excuse me, Sir?”

“Reyes, you’re one of my finest officers. I always know when you are working, you are serving the community to the best of your ability. However, burn out is a real thing, so I’m taking you off the schedule and giving you the weekend off.”

Carlos didn’t know what to say. He was actually slightly panicked. “But Sir, I’m not burned out. I would really like to work this weekend.” 

If he was working, he wouldn’t be thinking about TK...and his beautiful face...and how he wanted to fix all his problems for him.

Carlos was always the guy in the relationship that wanted to fix his partner’s problems, often at the expense of his own happiness. He found himself having similar thoughts with TK and the only way he focused on something other than the guy he was crushing hard on was to keep himself busy. Busy to the point of exhaustion so that all he wants to do is crawl into bed after a long shift instead of calling TK. ‘Cause TK could get him to fall hard and he didn’t want to spook him this early.

“Reyes, I don’t have to spout police burnout rates to you. I know you know them. You’re young and I’m hoping to keep you around for the long haul because you’re a damn fine officer.”

“Thank you, Sir, but...”

“No buts, you’re off this weekend. Find something to do that you young people consider fun. I don’t want to see your face until Monday” The captain waved his hand in a manner indicting to Carlos the matter was closed and he should leave his office.

Carlos let out a breath. “Yes, Sir.” He got up from the chair and left the office.

*****************************  
Later that evening, Carlos sat down hard on his couch and blew out a breath. What was he going to do with a whole weekend to himself? He thought about all the home improvement projects on his list that he hadn’t gotten around to.

But then he pulled out his phone. Maybe he should just text TK and find out if had any plans for the weekend. He might has well feed his TK addiction since he would probably be thinking about him anyway.

Carlos’s thumb hovered over TK’s name, but then he shook his head. “No,” he said to himself. He didn’t want to be that person. He needed to give TK space so he could figure out if he was all in on this relationship. 

Scrolling just below TK’s name in his text message feed, he saw another name. Someone he knew he could always rely on. 

“Well I guess those home improvement projects will be on the back burner again.” 

Carlos dialed the familiar number. He listened to it ringing until the other end was picked up.

“Hey, Carlos!” He heard his cousin say as the phone was answered on the other end.

“Hi Eddie! How are you and Christopher?”

“We’re hanging in there. Christopher is growing like a weed and still as inquisitive about every little thing.” Carlos found himself smiling. His cousin was raising an amazing young man. “What’s going on with you?”

“Not much, man. I actually was calling because I’m not working this weekend and not much else is going on. I was wondering if I could come visit you in L.A.?”

“Of course! It’s actually the perfect time. Buck and I are off this weekend too, so we were planning on taking Christopher to the San Diego zoo, if you don’t mind an early Saturday morning.” Carlos smiled at the mention of Eddie’s best friend. He hadn’t met him yet, but he heard a lot of stories.

“No man that sounds awesome. Would love to go to the zoo with you guys.”

“Cool. Have you booked a flight yet?” Eddie asked.

“No. I’ll do that right now and text you the details.”

“Sounds good. Looking forward to see you.”

“Same here. See ya later” Both men hung up.

Carlos stared at his phone for a second...wondering if he should text TK anyways to let him know his plans. His finger hovered over the text message icon again, but he shook his head. Instead, he opened a browser and booked a round trip flight to LAX for the next day.

**************************************

Carlos walked off the plane at LAX the next afternoon, rolling a small carry on behind him. He had texted Eddie on the plane while waiting for passengers to disembark to let him know he had landed. Eddie had texted back to say he was almost at the airport and he would meet him his the passenger pick up area...so that is where Carlos currently headed.

Once outside, Carlos stepped near the curb so he could keep an eye out for Eddie’s truck. Instead a Jeep pulled up in front of him a couple of minutes later.

Eddie jumped out of the passenger side. “Carlos!” He exclaimed and pulled Carlos into a big hug.

Carlos pulled back. “It’s good to see you, Eddie!” The smile on his face genuine. He really missed having his cousin in Texas. Although there was a little bit of an age difference, they had always been close growing up.

Just then Carlos noticed a tall, blonde drink of water approach them. Said drink of water put his arm around his cousin’s back.

“Carlos, this is Buck, my boyfriend. Buck, this is my cousin, Carlos,” Eddie said, introducing the two men.

“Nice to meet you, Carlos,” Buck said and extended his hand.

Carlos stood frozen for a moment. He already knew Eddie was bi-sexual, having come out to each other years before. He was just shocked Eddie was in a relationship...with the person he always claimed was just his friend. Ever since Shannon died, Eddie told him numerous times he wasn’t ready to jump on that horse again whenever the topic of dating would come up. He should have seen it coming though since most of his conversations with Eddie usually featured Buck. 

He tried to recall if his mother or one of his tias had mentioned this new development to him, but he was drawing a blank. That is when he realized Eddie and Buck were both staring at him strangely and that Buck had his hand extended.

“Oh sorry!” Carlos exclaimed and took Buck’s hand. “Nice to finally meet you, Buck. I’ve heard a lot about you. I just didn’t realize Eddie and you were dating.”

Eddie looked a little sheepish. “Sorry. It’s still somewhat new between us and we haven’t really told many people, except a few family and friends.

“Does Abuela know?”

“Yes, and she highly approves,” Eddie responded happily. Buck smiled and puffed out his chest, happy to have the approval of the matriarch of the Diaz family. 

Carlos nodded.

Eddie glanced over at the Jeep. “We better get out of here before LAPD’s finest tell’s us to move on. Is this all you brought?” Eddie pointed to Carlos’s suitcase.

“Yeah, I just brought the one carry on.”

“K. Well, let’s get moving then.” Buck walked over the driver’s side, while Eddie climbed into the front passenger seat and Carlos got himself and his luggage into the back seat.

“Let’s roll,” said Buck as he pulled out into the arrival terminal traffic.

As Buck drove them back to Eddie’s place, the three men discussed work and Buck and Carlos got to know each other a little bit. Then Eddie asked the one question Carlos had been hoping to avoid on this trip.

“So are you seeing anyone right now, Carlos?” Eddie asked as he reached across the Jeep’s console and held Buck’s hand that was resting there. Buck turned to Eddie for a second, smiled, and turned his head back to the road.

His initial gut response was to say no. He hadn’t yet told Eddie about TK. He actually hadn’t really talked to anyone about TK except Michelle. At this point, he wasn’t really sure how to define their relationship and just found it easier to keep silent about it. But it also left him alone, stuck in his own head, with no sounding board. So he decided to be honest.

“There is...someone. We’ve just been sort of casually seeing each other. I don’t really know how to define our relationship yet,” Carlos replied.

He caught Buck’s eye in the rear view mirror and Eddie turned his head to glance back at him. 

Eddie could tell there was a story there. He knew his cousin and knew his track record with his previous relationships. If he didn’t know how to define it, then it must be complicated as hell. Carlos was usually up front to all the men he dated about what he wanted.

“It’s cool, Carlos. You don’t have to talk about it if you don’t want to,” Eddie said.

It was in that moment that Carlos realized Buck and Eddie probably were the two best people he could talk to about his situation. 

And that is how he found himself spewing forth all the details about him and TK as they slogged through L.A. traffic. He explained how TK and him met. How they line danced together. How he was the best sex of his life. His failed attempt at a “let’s get to know each other” dinner. Seeing TK at the police station and learning about his addiction issues.

He told them his fears about pushing TK too far too fast and losing him. How he didn’t know how to admit his feelings without scaring him off. Carlos finished only after admitting the reason he even was in L.A. was because he was using extra shifts as a coping mechanism to not think about TK and his captain had forced him to take a weekend off.

Eddie and Buck sat in silence for a second. 

“Sometimes the best relationships start out as friendships,” Buck said quietly as he squeezed Eddie’s hand together. “It sounds like this guy needs a friend right now. Someone he knows will be there for him even if he’s acting his worst. Someone who see’s his scars and still thinks he’s beautiful. And in the end, if you think you are that man, just be honest with him. Let him know where you would like the relationship to go, but that you are willing to be patient until he gets there too.”

Carlos let Buck’s words sink in as they pulled into Eddie’s driveway. 

***********************************

Carlos woke up early Saturday morning to the smell of pancakes wafting through the house. Noting it was 7am, he rolled out of bed knowing they would be leaving within the hour to head to San Diego.

After getting dressed and enjoying Buck’s breakfast spread, the four of them headed out for the day.

They had a great time in San Diego. The highlight for Christopher was seeing all his favorite animals at the zoo. Buck had even bought Christopher a huge stuffed panda that he was currently clutching to his chest as he dozed in the back seat next to Carlos. He was just glad it wasn’t a giant stuffed tiger....something else to remind him of his favorite firefighter. 

Carlos decided to sit back and try to get some sleep since it had been a long day.

As he closed his eyes, he tried to clear his mind of all thoughts, but instead, he started hearing some murmurs about Austin on the radio.

Carlos eyes immediately opened. “Hey Eddie, could you turn that up, please?”

“Sure,” Eddie replied as he reached over to turn up the volume.

“This evening, a tornado touched down in the city of Austin causing a state of emergency to be enacted. It brought down trees and power lines in the area. Citizens are being asked to stay indoors and keep off the streets as emergency personnel try to clear the roads and attend to various emergency calls.”

“Oh my god,” Carlos whispered. All he could think of was his family and friends. He pulled out his phone and tried to dial anyone he could think of in his contacts, but none of his calls were going through. 

“They said power lines are down,” Eddie started. “Probably cell service is down too. I’m sure everyone is fine. There is nothing you can do until you get home.”

All day Carlos was dreading the thought of heading home because he still wasn’t sure how to handle TK. He found hanging out with Eddie, Buck, and Christopher to be just the distraction he needed. However, he now realized he has been hiding and only putting off the inevitable. He needed to directly ask TK where he saw their relationship headed like Buck suggested. If TK didn’t want a relationship, then he would do his best to be there for him as a friend. But now, knowing a tornado had hit, he couldn’t get home fast enough.


	2. TK

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> TK realizes he hasn’t heard from Carlos in a couple of days and tries to find him.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Once again, chapter has not been beta’ed. Please excuse any typos and grammar errors.

TK threw himself on top of his bed Sunday evening. What an exhausting day it had been! Dealing with the aftermath of Saturday’s tornado and learning of his father’s cancer diagnosis really drained him. 

Whatever happened, he couldn’t lose his dad. He knew he wouldn’t be able to handle that. Not at this point in his sobriety...so close to his last relapse. He’d be gutted.

His dad is the most selfless man he knew. He loved TK unconditionally, no matter what he threw at him. TK knows without his support, he would have given into the darkness he felt always creeping around the outer edges of his soul. On good days, he barely registered it’s existence, but on the days he felt the most insecure of himself, the darkness would feel like a vibration inside of him that he had to consciously keep at bay. On those days, he focused on his dad… on his new fire fam... on his job… on all the things that reminded him he has reasons to be happy...to live. Which, in turn, made him think of Carlos.

A smile quickly took over him, but as quickly as it came, it was quickly replaced by a furrowed brow. He just realized he hadn’t heard from Carlos recently.

TK grabbed his phone off the nightstand next to him and opened his iMessage app. Carlos’s name was near the top, but the last message he received was on Thursday morning.

TK re-read the message to see if he missed something. “Good morning gorgeous ☀️ ☕️ “ was all it said. To which he replied “Morning 🥱.”

TK knew he was a little standoffish with Carlos at times, but not hearing from him, especially after a disaster like the tornado, was out of character for him.

He went to type a message to check in, but then he realized he still had no cell service.

“Damnit,” TK muttered as he tossed his phone to the side. They get you hooked to your phone to the point you can’t live without it and then it doesn’t work when you really need it!

“Screw this,” TK thought. He’d do this the old fashion way, by popping over for a visit.

TK sat up, grabbed his phone off the bed and his wallet off the dresser before heading to his dad’s bedroom.

Not wanting to wake him if he was asleep, he softly knocked on the door. “Dad, you awake?” he asked.

Not hearing a response, TK slowly opened the door. His dad was awake and was preparing to get out of the bed, presumably to answer the door.

“No, don’t get up,” TK quickly said. “Are you feeling ok for a bit if I run over to Carlos’s house?”

“Well, sure, but can’t you wait until morning? It’s still kinda dangerous to be out on the roads.”

“I know Dad, but I haven’t heard from Carlos in a couple of days and cell service is still down. I just need to run by and see for myself he’s ok.” 

The fact that TK admitted he needed to see the police officer was physically fine spoke volumes...even to his dad.

“Ok, son. Be careful. If things are dicey, then you come straight home and we’ll go check on him in the morning...together.” TK nodded in response.

“Love you, Dad,” TK said as he started to head down the hallway to exit the house.

“Love you too!” He heard his dad call out.

*******************  
A half hour later, TK rolled up in front of Carlos’s house. It should have only taken 15 minutes, but he had to backtrack a couple of times due to downed trees. He certainly was learning his way around Austin though.

The first thing TK noted was Carlos’s car was in the driveway. The second thing he noted was all the lights were off in the house.

He made his way to the house, avoiding some tree debris along the way, and knocked on the front door.

TK waited a minute and then knocked again. “Carlos! You in there? It’s TK.”

After still not getting a response, Carlos crept around to a front window and tried to look in, but there wasn’t much he could make out in the darkness. He had no luck either when he turned the flashlight on from his phoneZZ as.

He proceeded back to the front and started looking around for a place a key might be hidden. TK knew his cop boyfriend….did he just think of him as his boyfriend?...wouldn’t hide a key, but it was all he could think of to try. 

“Next time I see him, I’m getting a key,” he muttered to himself in frustration. A key would be a huge leap in their relationship at this point, but he didn’t have it in him to care. He was growing concerned and the question of his relationship status was moot in his mind at this point. He had to admit to himself that he did indeed like Carlos and wanted to step his toe into the dating pool again with him...if he ever found him!

TK then walked around to the back of the property to see if he could get in that way. Not surprisingly, that didn’t work either.

Barring breaking a window to get in...and TK highly doubted Carlos would appreciate that...he didn’t know what else to do.

But then he noticed movement in the window of the house next door. His neighbor seemed to be home!

TK rushed over and knocked gently on the door. An elderly woman answered the door. “Yes?”

TK pasted on his megawatt smile in the hopes of making the woman feel at ease.

“Hi, ma’am. My name is TK. I’m a friend of Carlos Reyes. Your neighbor.” TK pointed towards Carlos’s house.

“Ah, yes my dear Carlos. Such a sweet and helpful young man.”

TK chuckled to himself. Of course Carlos would be that type of neighbor.

“Yes, I am trying to get a hold of him to make sure he’s ok after the tornado came through, but he doesn’t seem to be home. Do you know if he’s working or have you seen him recently?”

“Well, let me think. I did see him. Yesterday. No, Friday. Yes, it was Friday because I was waiting for my friend June to pick me up. We go over to our friend Alice’s house the first Friday of every month to play cards.”

“Oh that’s lovely, ma’am. Did you happen to talk to Carlos on Friday? Did he say anything to you?” TK asked, trying to steer the conversation back in the direction he needed it to go. Working in emergency services taught him how a conversation can quickly derail and go down a rabbit hole if not careful when trying to extract information from victims and witnesses during a crisis.

“Oh no I didn’t talk to him. He was leaving his house and getting in the car?”

“Did he have his uniform on? Did he look like he was going to work?”

The older woman scrunched up her nose in thought. “Well no. He was wearing everyday type of clothes. Jeans.”

“And he got into his car?”

“Oh, no.” She replied. He got into a car I’d never seen before. “He put his suitcase in the trunk and got into the car and..”

Suitcase?!? TK thought. Carlos hadn’t mentioned he was going anywhere. And just who picked him up? Was he seeing someone else?

“...they drove off.”

No, Carlos is honest to a fault. If he was seeing someone else, he would have told TK.

“Well, thanks for the information. It sounds like he might have gone out of town. Lucky for him because he got to miss all this mess.” TK gestured at the debris laying around. “Have a good night ma’am.”

“Thank you. You too!” She yelled at TK’s retreating back.

If he was honest with himself, he was smarting just a wee bit that Carlos went somewhere and didn't tell him. But TK couldn’t really blame him with the hot, cold he was currently blowing in his direction.

As he unlocked the door to his car with the key fob, he heard the sound of tires coming to a stop. He looked to see a blue Honda pull in front of Carlos’s house. And out stepped the missing man himself.

Carlos and TK both froze and locked eyes. At that moment, they communicated so much to each other. Mostly how glad they were to see each other. Alive. Breathing.

TK didn’t care how stupid he looked. He ran over to where Carlos was standing...next to his stupid suitcase...the Honda having driven off already...and literally jumped into Carlos arms.

They squeezed each other so tight. Hands roaming over each other bodies as if to make sure the other was fully intact and okay. Only pulling apart in order to get a proper breath, but even then standing as close as they could to one another.

Then TK reared back and hit Carlos’s shoulder with his open palm.

“Where were you? I haven’t heard from you in two days, Carlos!” TK complained.

A grin broke out on Carlos’s face. TK couldn’t believe he had the nerve to smile!

“Did you miss me, Tiger?” Carlos asked in a low, sexy voice.

TK just blinked at him, stupefied...and a little turned on. “Well, there was a tornado...and I didn’t know where you were. You could have been hurt or bleeding or unconscious somewhere and I didn’t know!” His voice getting louder as he went on.

“Hey, calm down. I’m here.” Carlos said. “I’m sorry if I worried you. I got a few days off and decided to go to L.A. to visit my cousin.”

“L.A.? You have a cousin in L.A.?”

“Yes, Tyler. I have a cousin in L.A. His name is Eddie. He’s a firefighter for the LAFD. I stayed with him, his son, and his boyfriend.”

TK sighed and looked off to the side. “Maybe if I had stayed for that dinner you made a couple of weeks ago I might have learned that information before now.” 

“Hey,” Carlos said, getting TK to look back in his eyes. “It’s fine. All that matters to me is if you want to get to know me better. Do you?”

TK stared into his caring eyes. “Yes, I want to get to know you better.” 

Carlos smiles and dips his head down for a quick kiss. Clearly happy with his response. 

“Now should we talk about how idiotic it was to come over here when Austin is in a state of emergency?” 

“Carlos,” TK whined. “I was worried….more than I thought I’d be,” he added with a whisper.

Carlos leaned forward and pecked TK on the lips.

“Do you want to come inside? We can catch up on the past couple of days.”

“Actually,” TK started, pulling back. “Rain check? I’ll explain later when we have some time to really talk, but I want to get back home to my Dad.” 

He didn’t want to get into the heaviness of his feelings regarding his dad’s cancer diagnosis at this moment. He knew if he opened up that wound with Carlos, he’d have trouble holding himself together. He wanted to tell Carlos when he had his head screwed on better and they could talk uninterrupted. He knew he was going to need this amazing man’s strength in the coming months.

“Sure,” Carlos said. “I’ll text you...well, when the phone lines are working again...then maybe we can try that dinner again?”

“That would be perfect,” TK said. He leaned forward, kissed Carlos one more time, gave him a tight squeeze and pulled back.

“‘Night Carlos.”

Carlos smiles. “‘Night Tyler. Drive safe.”

TK walked back to his car and headed home.

He knew things were going to get heavier for the foreseeable future, but it was about time he was there for his dad like his dad has always there for him. And, he felt just a little lighter about it all, knowing he had Carlos in his corner.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for reading!

**Author's Note:**

> Thanks for reading! I hope you enjoyed it. Second chapter will be from TK’s POV and should be up later tonight.


End file.
